Cruiser’s Net is a masterpiece of connectivity
By Dee McClure, GLCC Director and Port Captain
Roy Eaton literally is the voice of the North Channel, through his internationally known Cruiser’s Net. He will attend the 2025 GLCC Annual Rendezvous in Little Current. We visited with Roy recently to understand his background, a little history of Manitoulin Island and the genesis for the world-famous Cruiser’s Net.
A little history on Manitoulin Island. Living on the island runs deep in Roy’s family heritage, with three generations on his father’s side. People born on the island are known as “Haweaters,” a name derived from the hawberry, the bright red fruit of the hawthorn tree. The hawberry helped Manitoulin’s first European settlers stave off scurvy during a famine. To be a “haweater” is a high honor on Manitoulin, so much so that people covet even being an “Honorary Haweater.” Roy is not a Haweater. His wife Margaret is, so the household gets half credit. Area boaters, however, know Roy through Cruiser’s Net.
Cruiser’s Net connects boaters
Each morning from July 1 to Aug. 31, on VHF channel 71, Roy starts the Cruiser’s Net from the Anchor Inn with, “It’s 9 a.m. Welcome boaters to the Little Current Yacht Club’s Cruiser’s Net. Is there any emergency or medical or priority traffic?” Roy may request assistance from other boaters (i.e., doctors in the area of the distressed boater, someone who has a spare part, etc.), direct them to resources (i.e., closest veterinarian or mechanic), or be the conduit for contact with the Canadian Coast Guard.
The value of Roy’s connectivity to boaters is reflected in his being listed as a resource for the Coast Guard, Ontario Provincial Police and Air Search and Rescue.
After providing a summary of the weather, world events, and local news, Roy invites boaters to call in and provide their boat name and location. Boaters visiting Little Current are welcome to attend the morning broadcast where volunteers help Roy record each caller’s information. Each Friday, a Cruiser’s Net Happy Hour is held from 3-5 pm in the bar area of the Anchor Inn.
A life-long love affair with the region
Roy was born in Penetnguishene, grew up in Sudbury and spent summers in Whitefish Falls exploring the various coves of the North Channel. Roy is the former head of Guidance at Manitoulin Secondary School before moving into administration, retiring as Principal in 2000. Roy and his wife, Margaret, were active in the sailing community on Manitoulin, first on a Catalina 22 (S/V Merganser), then on a 30’ Canadian Sailcraft (S/V Mystic Loon). One year after retiring, the Eaton’s set sail on a 9-month cruise from Little Current to the Bahamas.
The start of Cruiser’s Net
The Bahamas is an ideal cruising ground of warm waters and ocean breezes. While in the Abacos, they would listen to a morning Cruiser’s Net broadcast on VHF out of Marsh Harbor. The morning news was US-centric, although about 60% of the boats in harbor flew a Canadian flag.
At an evening happy hour, Roy was encouraged to call in the next morning and ask, ”There are Canadians down here – what about some Canadian news?” That was the beginning of Roy doing a small segment each morning on Canadian news for the local Cruiser’s Net.
Upon returning home, Bruce O’Hara, then-owner of the Anchor Inn, wanted to encourage boats from the annual Port Huron (Mich.) -to-Mackinac Island Sailboat Race to then explore the North Channel and Manitoulin Island, including an international race from Mackinac Island (US) to Manitoulin (Canada). A certified international race has to be sponsored by a yacht club. None existed there. A group of volunteers soon organized the Little Current Yacht Club (LCYC) with Roy being the founding Commodore. LCYC needed members. However, with no club building or any activities, that was a challenge.
Roy suggested creating a Cruiser’s Net that would meet in the Anchor Inn and have guest speakers/boaters with different areas of expertise (coined “WD-40 for the Mind”), both ideas originating from Roy’s winter in the Abacos.
July 1, 2004 - The Cruiser's Net was Hatched
Starting on July 1, 2004 at 9 a.m. on VHF Channel 71, the first North Channel Cruiser’s Net had three callers and grew from there. Bruce O’Hare supported the Net by buying equipment and offering space at the Inn. In August 2004, a writer for Cruising World magazine interviewed Roy and Bruce. That article propelled the Cruiser’s Net into the limelight.
A way to connect boaters
Every Friday from 3-5 p.m., Denise Lytle, the current owner of the Anchor Inn, and her staff provide free hors d’oeuvres for boaters. It’s a great opportunity to renew friendships and for boaters new to the North Channel to connect with seasoned boaters to learn about all the great local anchorages.
Also on Fridays during the Cruiser's Net, Roy relays a historical story about different locations in the North Channel. At the end of the broadcast, he asks “the Question of the Day” based on the story. The first boater who gives Debby Turner the correct answer, receives a prize from her store.
Boaters who hear the broadcast but are too far away for their signal to be received are assisted by other boaters providing a relay. The Cruiser's Net has embraced technology and offers boaters out of range of the VHF signal to participate via simultaneous Zoom presentation.
Many boaters who visit Roy bring burgees from their home clubs. Visitors are not just from Canada and the United States. The Cruiser’s Net has received over 200 burgees, including from such far-away countries as South Africa, New Zealand, Turkey, and the Caribbean. Many are displayed in the broadcast room.
An ‘Anchor’ for the broadcast
Although the Anchor Inn has changed hands over the years, Roy and Cruiser’s Net have always had a home there. Roy has also taken the Cruiser’s Net on the road, so to speak. In 2013, at the request of GLCC Rendezvous chairs Joe and Karen Mesenburg, Roy broadcast the Cruiser’s Net from Charlevoix, Mich., while a friend did it back home in Little Current.
Roy’s broadcast, which just finished its 20th year, had 4,159 call-ins for the two-month period. The record number of check-ins to the Net in one morning was 172 boats.
Connections are not just limited to summer. For a number of years, Roy and Margaret wintered in North Fort Myers, Fla. Boaters who enjoyed the potluck gatherings in Little Current, led to a Cruiser’s Net potluck in Florida. That event in the third week of February routinely drew 80 to 100 people.
A few stories to tell
There have been many great stories stemming from the Cruiser’s Net. Roy recalled two of his favorites:
– Most meaningful: A caller from Mary Ann Cove said they planned to travel to the Pool in Baie Fine, where VHF reception is poor. The next day, another caller to Cruiser’s Net said someone needed to contact that boat about a family emergency. Roy asked boaters to help. That day, the boat had several dinghies advise them to get in touch with Roy immediately. A few weeks later, a teary-eyed stranger came to the Anchor Inn and hugged Roy. He explained that his was the boat in the Pool. Because of Cruiser’s Net, they were notified of the family issue and, as a result, were able to catch a flight out of Toronto to Georgia in time to attend a favorite nephew’s funeral and support the family.
– Funny: A wife caller said her husband had a Rapala lure fishhook embedded in his hand. They were in Oak Bay. Roy asked for anyone in the area who could assist. A doctor in the adjoining cove said he could be at the boat within 15 minutes. The doctor advised the husband to not try to remove the hook. The doctor later reported that the husband had not heeded the doctor’s advice. By the time the doctor arrived, the husband had embedded his other hand with the trailing hooks of the lure.
A history of service
Roy’s 20-plus years of dedication to the boating community has been recognized far and wide. He has received two national awards: the prestigious Governor General’s Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, and the Canadian Safe Boating Council’s Volunteer of the Year. Roy is a lifetime member of America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association, and an honorary member of the GLCC and the Trailer/Sailors Association, among others.
Roy sums up his Cruiser’s Net’s mission as this: “You may come to the North Channel as a total stranger, but through the Cruiser’s Net, a community is formed and you are no longer a stranger. You may go into an anchorage not knowing anyone, and after Cruiser’s Net and the boater call-ins, you’ve heard who is in your anchorage and can introduce yourself to them as well as request assistance if needed. "Boaters helping boaters -- that's what it's all about."
MEETING THE LEGEND
We are so fortunate to have Roy Eaton looking out for, and connecting us, in the North Channel. I can’t wait for the GLCC members to have an opportunity to meet Roy and join him for several Cruiser’s Net broadcasts in July during the GLCC annual Rendezvous.